The First Football Card

Does it really count?

The First Football Card

Does this really count as the first football card?

This is from the 1888 Goodwin Champions set, which, as you can see, was featured in a number of different cigarette products at the time.

But should this count as the first football card?

I ask this because this clearly is not a set dedicated to football players. The Beecher card is the only football card in the set, which, as you can see, includes a number of players from different sports.

Traditionally, collectors haven’t thought highly of multi-sport sets. Though this is certainly rare and valuable, I do have to wonder whether this should count as a proper football card.

Notice, by the way, the size and shape of the ball in Beecher’s hand. The American football had not yet shrunk to resemble the rugby ball.

What do you think?